Nicosia, Cyprus. Cyprus is seeking to address growing labour market pressures by expanding access to foreign workers as demand rises across key sectors. Labour Minister Marinos Mousiouttas held talks in Cairo on revising and widening a labour agreement with Egypt.
Government steps to address labour shortages
Cyprus’ labour market is under increasing strain as economic growth, low unemployment and the expansion of technology companies have pushed up demand for workers in construction, tourism, retail and ICT.
The government is pursuing measures on several fronts to support businesses while aiming to keep the economy on a steady growth path.
Talks in Cairo on employment of Egyptian workers
Mousiouttas travelled to Cairo last week for talks with his Egyptian counterpart on employing Egyptian workers in Cyprus, as part of efforts to review and expand the labour agreement with Egypt.
The meeting focused on the Memorandum of Understanding signed between Cyprus and Egypt in June 2024, which was intended to facilitate the employment of Egyptian nationals in Cyprus but did not deliver expected results, partly due to limited interest from Cypriot employers.
Mousiouttas said the two sides agreed to place the agreement on a new basis and expand it to cover more sectors, including tourism professions, construction, IT and recycling.
Economic growth and sector performance
Cyprus has continued to record solid growth despite uncertainty linked to the crisis in the Middle East.
Updated data published by the Statistical Service last Monday showed the economy grew by 3.8 per cent in 2025, while GDP rose by 4.5 per cent in the fourth quarter.
Growth was mainly supported by information and communication technologies, hotels and restaurants, trade and construction. Construction rose by 9.4 per cent, the information and communications sector grew by 8 per cent, and trade and tourism increased by 7.2 per cent.
IMF outlook
The International Monetary Fund, in its World Economic Outlook published on April 14, expects Cyprus’ growth to slow to 3 per cent in 2026 from 3.8 per cent in 2025, before stabilising at around 3 per cent in the following years.
How do you expect expanded sector coverage in the Cyprus-Egypt labour agreement to affect local employers and job seekers?
